Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant parsnip in Zone 1b should be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Parsnip

Frost tolerance for parsnip:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since parsnip are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant parsnip in Zone 1b is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant parsnip and expect a good harvest is probably July. If you wait any later than that and your parsnip may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your parsnip indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 1b the average date of last frost happens on June 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -55°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 1b is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Zone 1b you get surprised by a frost after June 15 be ready to protect your parsnip in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 1b

Here is the info for USDA Zone 1b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	June 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	July 15
Lowest Expected Low	-55°F
Highest Expected Low	-50°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -55°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -50°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 1b

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 1b.